The two of them are Minus Three handicaps in American Rules - a distinction shared only with Carolinians Jeff Soo and Danny Huneycutt - and they probably play in more events at Championship level than any other players in the US. Grimsley can do it because he's mostly retired, and Ben because as a croquet nomad he combines playing with teaching, will go wherever the action is (and maybe a cash purse as well), and will sleep anywhere quiet and dry. So it makes sense that once again, this popular pair top the Grand Prix rankings, having switched places in the two last year-long contests.

One of their early American Rules triumphs was the 2008 Arizona Open, where Ben and Doug shake hands holding their doubles trophies.

A few years ago Ben Rothman was faced with a choice: head off to graduate school or try supporting himself as a croquet pro. As he explained at some length in a "Courtside Chat" with Bob Alman, he chose the latter and in 2009 it paid off for him professionally, if not necessarily financially. In what would be a career year for most, Rothman won both the Association Rules National Singles and Doubles Championships, the Peachwood Classic, the Singles and Doubles of both the Merion Invitational and the New York Clayton Cup, the Selection Eights and the US Open, while finishing third and second, respectively, in the USCA Rules National Singles and Doubles. If that wasnít enough, he finished second in the World Championships (the highest finish ever by an American) and helped the US secure its first ever Solomon Trophy from Great Britain.
In light of such a masterful performance, itís only fitting that Rothman, who learned the game from his uncle, Larry Stettner, at the Claremont Hotel in Southwest Harbor, Maine, would top the 2009 USCA Grand Prix and win what may be the first of many "Player of the Year" awards. Perhaps the only thing that the USCAís young star didnít do was break the record for most Grand Prix points set by Doug Grimsley last year when Rothman finished second. Rothmanís total this year was a scant 265 points short of the 31,720 points amassed by Grimsley in 2008.

Grimsley finished a distant second this year at 21,550. Rounding out the top five were Danny Huneycutt (15th last year), two-time winner Jeff Soo (4th last year as well) and Johnny Mitchell (7th last year), in that order.

Although former winner John Osborn was sixth and Peter Just made a second consecutive top-ten finish at tenth, a few new faces made appearances in the remainder of the top ten. Ben Morehead of Connecticut was seventh, National Croquet Center head David McCoy was eighth and George Cochran of Louisiana was ninth. None of these three had cracked the top 25 prior to this year.

Tracking the Dynamic Duo

Rothman is 26 years old, and not wealthy. So how can he afford it all this croquet? "Because I have an insanely low overhead. I have no mortgage, debt, rent, dependants, or girlfriend. I will sleep on floors, fold out couches or the occasional dog bed (and slept on all three at various times in 2009). I travel by bus or train or super cheap five-stop cross country planes to arrive at the venue red-eyed and for much less cost than most of my fellow competitors."

Rothman admits to having no home at all: "I live near a croquet court," he explains, "in many different cities, states and occasionally countries. This winter I'm in Palm Springs or Rancho Mirage staying in various digs free. They have me in a club condo for fourteen weeks of my five-month stay. The rest of the time I'm in guest rooms of kind croquet supporters." It's not charity, exactly, as Ben is earning praise as a teacher and coach, as well as occasional Tournament Director, and is always willing to pitch in when help is needed.

In the tradition of Osborn/Osborn, Rodoni/Mehas and Soo/Scott, Grimsley/Rothman are the team to beat in 2010. Here they discuss tactics courtside in the Solomon Trophy matches at California's Mission Hills in December 2009, where they helped give the USCA its first win over England in the two-decade series by winning all three of their doubles matches.

It seems inevitable that one of the very few large croquet event venues generating revenue on the sport will hire Rothman as the resident pro. In the meantime, he continues to hone his game and insists that he has yet to reach his peak either in singles or in his partnership with Grimsley. "Doug and I are two of the most active and competitive players in the US, so I'm willing to bet both our names will be in the Grand Prix top five next year as well. We'll keep on playing not for the accolades, although they are nice, but because we love this game and the people who play it."

Rothman and Grimsley are fierce opponents, each respectful of the other's achievements. Doug comments, "Ben and I will be playing doubles at the AC Rules Nationals at Mission Hills in April (we're the defending champs), and most likely will be paired together at the MacRob in August. We seem to be a pretty good doubles team. Having played as a team for last year's AC Nationals, The Carter Challenge, and the Solomon Trophy, we have yet to lose a match - and only two games - over that time."

Although decades separate them in age, their beards are identical as they drink victory champagne after the American team's Solomon Trophy win. The Solomon isn't contested in MacRobertson years, but Ben and Doug will be playing against England in those international test matches in England in July 2010, along with four other USCA teammates.

Both players press themselves towards mastery of the most advanced tactics in Association Croquet, some of dubious value. According to Ben, "Doug is the recently crowned 'King of OTP': six OTPs for one TPO this year, and one OTP for three TPOs in 2008 (I was the OTP). I have never been TPO'd by Doug and I was the victor in three of his seven OTPs, so I like to think I was at least a part of the coronation." [The OTP (Opponent Triple Peel) describes what happens when an aggressive player peels out one of the opponent balls on the expectation of winning the game by having two balls against the opponent's one ball. It's not a sure-fire strategy for winning and frequently backfires when the one-ball player hits in and finishes.]

That's not to say that Ben has a huge advantage over Doug in head-to-head games, despite the statistical failure, so far, of Doug's TPO attempts. Doug can quote the stats: "In Association games against each other, we played 20 times in 2009, with Ben holding a 11-9 lead. However, I did enjoy knocking him out of the USCA American Rules National Doubles in this year's final aided by an even better partner, Rich Curtis."

Younger players showing up in Grand Prix

The 2009 Grand Prix marked the emergence of other young players besides Rothman. Micah Beck, a recent graduate of St. Johnís College who now resides in Ithaca, New York, grabbed first place in the 3-5 handicap range of the Grand Prix. St. Johnís is noted for turning out numerous top notch croquet players and Beck is part of what will continue to be a long line. Beck was the USCA Rules First Flight National Singles and Doubles Champion in 2009. His doubles partner in the Nationals was Justin Berbig, another up and coming young player, who won the Second Flight Singles National Championship and finished second in the Grand Prix for handicaps between 9 and 11. Berbig is a student at the State University of New York at New Paltz and a member of its very active croquet team. Rothman, Beck and Berbig are just a few of the young players who have taken the game up in college and are playing actively in USCA tournaments.

The runner-up to Beck in the 3 to 5 handicap range was Bill Taft (fourth last year). Bill Cooley, Barbara Leeming and Mary Daly rounded out the top five.

Bob Roth of North Carolina topped the 6 to 8 competition. Second place went to one of the newer croquet players in the Fusz family - Jodie Rugart. Marty Ekstrom was third, Marie Haas was fourth, and Marc Campbell was fifth.

Rebecca Bergovsky of the New York Croquet Club finished fourth in the 9 to 11 handicap range in 2008, but took the top honors in 2009, partially on the strength of her first place doubles finish in the New York Osborn Cup. In third place behind Justin Berbig was Randall McAndrews. Billie Jean Taft finished fourth to insure a husband-and-wife top five Grand Prix finish. Marvin Salles was fifth.

Fewer than 900 players competed in the 2009 Grand Prix, which means than less than one-third of USCA players competed in a USCA sanctioned event during the year. The Grand Prix typically had more than 1,000 players every year as recently as 2006, and the recent slip is likely a function of the sagging economy, as USCA membership remains stable at more than 3,000 nationally despite the recession.

The 2010 Grand Prix is already under way. You can see the current standings - representing early sunbelt results at this writing - on the USCA website. The top 100 finishers in 2009 are listed below.